Page 59 of Zain

Ivy laughed. “Stop. You’re both so childish.”

Dana couldn’t help but inch her gaze to Zain’sface. He tethered his eyes to hers. Heat scorched her skin beneath his intense focus, and warmth spread through her loins. The need to be alone with him again almost made her chuck the delicious burrito and drag Zain back to their hotel room.

Suddenly realizing Ivy had asked her a question, she broke her focus on Zain. Embarrassment fizzled around her ears. “Sorry, what?”

Ivy smiled politely, but female knowing flashed on her face. “Oh, I just asked if you needed anything. Not sure if you were able to get things from your apartment or not.”

Dana nibbled on her burrito then wiped her mouth. “We stopped on the way here, actually. I should be good for a day or two.”

Gigi grimaced as she passed Zain a plate of chopped veggies and dip. “You think this will be resolved by then?”

He scooped up some cherry tomatoes, carrots, and cucumbers and mumbled his thanks.

Dana frowned. “Well, I hope so. We can’t stay in a hotel forever, and I need to get back to work.”

“Yeah, but finding a hired assassin isn’t so easy.” Gigi’s voice rang with knowing. Only months ago, a Mexican cartel had found her while she was in witness protection.

August must have picked up on the strain in her tone, because he wrapped his arm around her shoulders andkissed her hair.

Gigi had a point. The assassin would keep trying until he finished the job. Nothing short of taking Dana’s or Zain’s life would suffice.

“If the bastard tries again, this will end really fucking quickly.” The low, threatening timber of Zain’s warning made pride swell in Dana’s chest.

He glanced her way, and the hard, chiseled lines of his jaw screamed the need for revenge. His golden eyes flashed with murder, and his large hand balled into a fist on his thigh. She’d witnessed the wrath of those hands, had seen with her own eyes the trained soldier who’d killed more men than she could wrap her head around.

A shudder rippled down her spine. She should fear this man. He was aggressive, huge, and had emotions so pent up he could explode—something that both made her edgy and eager. Because lord help her, the quake Zain sent through her wasn’t unease...

It was full-blown desire.

She wet her lips as his stare swallowed her up. Her heart squeezed in her chest. Zain captivated, allured, and fascinated her. A devastating mixture.

New fear swirled around her. Her attraction for Zain was either bound for destruction or heartbreak. There was no in between.

***

A different kindof warmth spread over Zain as he sat next to Dana on the couch in their hotelroom. They’d left Backcountry a few hours ago and had just finished watching a movie. Dinnertime was approaching, and despite the delicious burrito he’d had earlier, he wanted more comfort foods—foods he’d been deprived of the last three years.

Dana’s calm, constant presence kept his blood pressure at a steady level. His mind never strayed far from Afghanistan, and this mundane existence, so unfamiliar to him, had him on edge. But being around Dana made that edge less maddening.

“It was nice to see everyone. Hard to believe I was gone only a few days.”

“Mmm.” He gave her a relaxed smile. “I take it you like working for Backcountry?”

“Yeah, I do. It’s like working with a group of friends. I feel useful and appreciated.” Sadness clung to her words.

“You weren’t appreciated at your last job?”

She chortled. “No. Don’t get me wrong, I loved working for the FBI. But the work atmosphere was stressful. My boss, Luis, was a prick. He hated it anytime I showed up Dustin.”

“Who’s Dustin?”

“An even bigger asshole than Luis.” She sighed. Her gaze stayed fixed on the form-fitting light-gray sweatpants she’d changed into when they’d gotten back. “No matter how hard I tried, how much I succeeded, everything I did was a failure in their eyes.”

“So you quit?”

She kept her eyes down and tucked in a corner of her mouth. “Not exactly. Dustin made a big mistake and tried to pin it on me. And it worked. But it was my fault for offering to help with the file he was working on. I thought I’d win them both over if I took on more work. Dustin had me sign off on something and I shouldn’t have—turned out to be something very important he let slip through the cracks.”

Anger pulsed through Zain. The fact that Dana hadn’t been appreciated and had potentially been discriminated against for being a woman was one thing. That she’d taken the fall for something she hadn’t done filled him with the fury of a nest of angry hornets. “He set you up.”

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